Chris Elsberry: Bluefish an armpit? Hardly. They're an original jewel

Published 1:00 am, Sunday, September 15, 2013

It was a throwaway quote. Just a one-sentence comment in a story about something that someone thought might happen but didn't, a small story that has now become, at least in my mind, a big story.

Last week, when the Sugar Land Skeeters came up from Texas for a series with the Bridgeport Bluefish, catcher Koby Clemens was with them. Clemens is the son of former Red Sox and Yankees pitcher Roger Clemens, and the fact that Clemens would be at the Ballpark at Harbor Yard was too much for the Bluefish organization to pass up.

So, the Bluefish emailed out a press release stating that there was a possibility that Clemens, the seven-time Cy Young Award winner, just "might" throw batting practice for the Skeeters. Of course it wasn't going to happen. The Bluefish were just throwing some you-know-what against the wall to see if it might stick. But it didn't. So when batting practice started and the Rocket was nowhere to be found -- he did show up just before game time -- one Sugar Land player had a comment for an area writer:

"That's why Bridgeport is the armpit of the Atlantic League," the player said.

Armpit of the Atlantic League. Ouch.

Considering that Superstorm Sandy blew through the state last October and hammered the ballpark, causing an estimated $100,000 in damages, the player should have had a little more respect toward the franchise. He should also consider that, basically, the Atlantic League built itself around the franchise in the early years and that the Bluefish continue to be viewed as one of the league's original jewels.

But no, this Sugar Land player had to call us "the armpit of the Atlantic League." Please.

"It came as a surprise to us when we read it the next day," said Bluefish Director of Player Personnel Paul Herrmann on Thursday. "But I'm sure that the player that said it just wasn't familiar with our history in the league, the whole situation dating back to the beginning of the Atlantic League. It was unfortunate that someone in the league would say something like that about any ballpark, especially when we're trying to promote the league and look to expand in the future."

Maybe Atlantic League president Frank Boulton should make the Sugar Land player write a 10,000-word essay on the Bridgeport franchise. Remember, this city not only hustled to build the Ballpark at Harbor Yard in time for the 1998 season -- Bridgeport wasn't supposed to start in the league until 1999 -- the organization also helped the Newark (N.J.) Bears franchise operate that season, having them play at Harbor Yard until their stadium was ready.

Oh, and let's see: Since 1998, the Bluefish (heading into the 2013 season) were the all-time Atlantic League leaders in wins (1,042), third all-time in attendance (3,309,673) and have made the playoffs seven times.

Armpit, my eye.

"I think it was just unfortunate timing with that player," Herrmann said. "It's probably his first time in the league, he's never seen the facility before, and especially now, he's playing in a brand-new facility (in Texas) and we're still doing some things to fix this place up. If he comes back next year, we'll surprise him."

Slowly (perhaps a little too slowly), but surely, the Bluefish are fixing the damage done to their ballpark. Herrmann said that all the leaks that have devastated the facility over the years are fixed, and that all that remains to be done is replacement of the ceiling tiles and the carpeting in the home and visitor's clubhouses and the umpire's room.

"It's still a work in progress but we're very close to finally getting it all finished and turned around and getting the ship rightened," Herrmann said. "It's basically menial stuff at this point. All the leaks have been fixed, so it's going from the top down, getting the ceiling tiles replaced and the carpeting replaced. We had to wait on those things until all the leaks were fixed, it's not too much."

On the field, the Bluefish can look to a solid gain in attendance for 2013. With two home games left heading into Saturday's game against Camden, Bridgeport stood at 149, 768, an improvement of 17,629 from last season. The Bluefish weren't helped by a dreadful first half (23-47) before they battled back during the second half to contend for the Liberty Division title.

"We're on the right track," Herrmann said. "It's taking time but we're on the right track."